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Thursday, July 30, 2015

Shane Bowers won’t be reporting to the
Cape Breton Screaming Eagles after all.

Bowers, who was one of the top players
available in this year’s QMJHL Entry Draft, was selected fourth overall by the
Screaming Eagles. It was reported before the draft that he would only report to
a select few markets – and Cape Breton wasn’t one of them. The Eagles drafted
him anyways, he went on stage, put his jersey on and it sounded like he would report.

Yesterday, the Cape Breton Post broke news that Bowers won’t be reporting to Cape Breton after all, opting for the United
States Hockey League. The Halifax native was a third round pick of the Waterloo
Black Hawks in the USHL Futures Draft.

Screaming Eagles head coach Marc-Andre
Dumont said that he was both surprised and disappointed that Bowers won’t be
reporting, especially since he is a Nova Scotia native.

It’s the third straight year that Cape
Breton’s top draft pick has not reported to the team, following Nicolas Roy in
2013 and Michael O’Leary last year.

It appears the Eagles aren’t interesting
in trading the talented forward, which would allow them to take a compensation pick in
next year’s draft.

“We have no intention of trading Shane –
he is a top end player who could have a significant impact on our franchise,
not just our team,” Dumont told the Post.

“We have no intention of trading Shane,”
Dumont added in the Chronicle Herald. “He's a franchise player. We have to keep
him and we will keep him.”

So there’s that. We’ll see what actually happens from here.

Bowers would have likely gone first
overall to the Sea Dogs if Joe Veleno was not deemed “exceptional” by Hockey
Canada. There have been rumours and speculation that the Dogs tried hard to
move up in the draft to select Bowers.

Bowers registered 23 goals and 29 assists in 34
games with the Halifax McDonald’s of the Nova Scotia Major Midget Hockey League
last season. He added 33 points in 17 playoff games.

Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Another current NHL player has been
added to the list of confirmed players for the Saint John Sea Dogs alumni game.

The Sea Dogs announced today via social
media that former captain Jonathan Huberdeau, now with the Florida Panthers,
will take part in the Aug. 8 alumni game at Harbour Station. The game is part
of the 2015 Wallace McCain Memorial Alumni Reunion.

Huberdeau is the franchise leader in
points, recording 257 in 195 games as a Sea Dog. He also added 69 points in 55
playoff games.

The now 22-year-old played a major role
in helping the Sea Dogs win three straight regular season titles, back-to-back
President Cup championships and a Memorial Cup title.

In 2011, Huberdeau was named the QMJHL
playoff and Memorial Cup MVP.

In 196 NHL games with the Panthers,
Huberdeau has recorded 38 goals and 75 assists. He won the league’s Calder
Trophy as rookie of the year in 2013.

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Simon Despres of the Anaheim Ducks and
Eric Gelinas of the New Jersey Devils have both confirmed that they will attend
the Sea Dogs’ Aug. 8 alumni game. The game is part of the 2015 Wallace McCain
Memorial Alumni Reunion.

Despres, the first overall pick in the
2007 QMJHL Entry Draft, played four seasons with Saint John from 2007-2011. In
240 regular season games, the “Big Horse” registered 25 goals and 109 assists.
He helped the Dogs win back-to-back regular season championships in 2010 and 2011 and President
Cup and Memorial Cup titles in 2011.

The Pittsburgh Penguins traded Despres
to the Ducks this past season where he had one goal and five assists in 16
regular season matches. He added a goal and six helpers in 16 playoff games.

Gelinas only played half a season with
Saint John in 2011, helping the club clinch a regular season championship along
with a President Cup and Memorial Cup title. In 27 games with the Dogs he had
three goals and 17 assists. In 19 playoff games, Gelinas added five goals and
seven assists.

This past season, the 24-year-old
recorded six goals and 13 assists in 61 games with the Devils.

Thursday, July 23, 2015

Kevin Gagne will be present at the Saint
John Sea Dogs alumni game on Aug. 8 at Harbour Station.

The Sea Dogs announced today via social media
that Gagne will be part of the 2015 Wallace McCain Memorial Alumni Reunion.
Tickets to the alumni game, happening Saturday, Aug. 8 at 2 p.m., are on sale
now.

Gagne joins Mike Thomas, Michael
Kirkpatrick, Jason Cameron, Zack Phillips and Stephen MacAulay as confirmed
players for the game. All six were part of the 2011 Memorial Cup championship
Sea Dogs squad.

Gagne, an Edmundston native, played with
Saint John for four-and-a-half seasons. He was traded to the Rimouski Oceanic
during the 2012-13 season.

The speedy defenseman helped Saint John
win three straight regular season championships, two President Cups and a
Memorial Cup. He finished his QMJHL career with 39 goals and 134 assists in 300
regular season games.

Gagne has spent the past two seasons
with the American Hockey League’s Norfolk Admirals. In 57 games last year, Gagne
posted two goals and six assists.

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Two more players have been confirmed for
the Aug. 8 Sea Dogs alumni game at Harbour Station.

The team announced today via social
media that forwards Zack Phillips and Stephen MacAulay have both confirmed that
they will attend the event.

The Aug. 8 game, which will take place
at 2 p.m., is the marque event of the 2015 Wallace McCain Memorial Alumni
Reunion. Tickets are now on sale.

Phillips, a Fredericton native, was a
first round pick of the Minnesota Wild in the 2011 NHL Draft. His was traded by
the Wild to the Boston Bruins this past season. In 16 games with the AHL’s
Providence Bruins, Phillips recorded three goals and eight assists.

Phillips spent three seasons with the
Sea Dogs from 2009-2011, helping the team win a President Cup and Memorial Cup
championship in 2011. According to Elite Prospects, he is third all time in
team scoring with 219 points in 192 games.

MacAulay is one of the winningest
players in league history, appearing in four straight President Cup finals and
three straight Memorial Cups. He won four regular season titles, three
President Cups and two Memorial Cups.

MacAulay is fourth all time in games
played as a Sea Dog, appearing in 255 games over parts of five seasons.
He played with the Saint Mary’s Huskies last season.

Hello. We are looking for an Assistant Editor/Writer for this blog. Full details:

We are looking for a dedicated, hard
working and innovative individual that will assist the Editor-in-Chief (EIC) in
daily operations of the blog. The primary roles of the Assistant Editor/Writer
will be to assist the EIC in writing/editing a variety of content, edit/post
content written by other contributors and generate/plan future story ideas.

Duties will include - but are not
limited to - the following:

Writing, editing and posting original written
content on Station Nation in a timely manner

Editing and posting content written by
other contributors – including post-game coverage

Use search engines, social media and
other resources to find news tips and stories on the current team, past players
and prospects

Represent Station Nation in a
professional manner on social media sites and other hockey blogs

Develop relationships with NHL bloggers
to assist in our coverage of Sea Dogs alumni and their coverage of prospects

Follow NHL and sports blogs on a daily
basis to find new opportunities and trends that could be brought to the junior
hockey blogosphere.

Qualifications:

Must have the ability to write and edit
one's own work and edit the work of others (a.k.a. unreal writing skills)

Must be able to attend or watch (via
webcast) the majority of Sea Dogs games live

Knowledge of digital media –
specifically blogs – and what kinds/types of written material they typically
produce

Ability to discover news worthy items
and produce appropriate content for them

Must have a sense of humour and be able
to show that in writing

Any kind of experience in journalism is considered a strong asset

Blogging experience of any kind is
considered a strong asset

Must have a strong interest in all aspects
of sports writing

Strong understanding of hockey rules, junior
hockey and the NHL player development system

General knowledge of the Sea Dogs and
QMJHL is a strong asset

Experience with video capturing and
editing is considered an asset

Experience with graphic design is considered an asset

Must know the difference between Saint John and St. John's

This is an unpaid volunteer position (a
QMJHL webcast account will be provided). This position is ideal for a student
looking to gain journalism/writing experience and/or someone who is very
passionate about sports writing.

Those interested in this position can
email stationnation@yahoo.ca with
“Assistant Editor/Writer” in the subject line. Please include a strong pitch as
to why you are the ideal person for this position and what
qualifications/experience you have.

We also encourage those who may not know
a ton about the Sea Dogs/QMJHL but meet the other qualifications to apply. If
you fall into this category, please indicate why you feel you will be able to quickly
learn about the team and league.

We thank all those who are interested. Only
the individuals selected for interviews will be contacted.

In addition to the Summer Showcase
hosted in Calgary at the Markin MacPhail Centre at WinSport’s Canada Olympic
Park, Chabot and camp invitees will monitored during the first few months of
the 2015-16 season and at the CHL Super Series to determine who will be invited
to Canada’s National Junior Team selection camp in December. In total, 22
players will be selected to represent Canada at the 2016 IIHF World Junior
Championship, Dec. 26, 2015 to Jan. 5, 2016 in Helsinki, Finland.

Along with the usual development camp stuff, Team Canada will play two exhibition games against the Czech Republic and Russia.

Former Sea Dogs defenseman Olivier
LeBlanc, a Columbus Blue Jackets prospect who was traded to the Cape Breton
Screaming Eagles this past season, was also invited.

Sea Dogs prospects Alex D’Orio and
Joseph Veleno will take part in the under-17 team portion of the showcase.
Meanwhile, Luke Green was invited to the under-18 camp.

Thursday, July 16, 2015

Zboril, selected 13th overall
by the Bruins in this year’s NHL Draft, recorded 13 goals and 20 assists in 44
regular season games with Saint John last season. He added one goal and two
assists in five post-season matches.

Although the Bruins seem to be sort of
rebuilding, the 18-year-old Zboril will likely return for another season of
junior.

In other news, former Dogs defenseman
Eric Gelinas has re-signed with the New Jersey Devils, inking a two-year
contract worth $3.15 million total, according to NorthJersey.com.

From NorthJersey.com:

Gelinas, 24, will make $1.5 million in 2015-16
and $1.65 million in 2016-17 for a salary cap hit of $1.575 million per season.
After the one-way deal expires, Gelinas would become a restricted free agent
again and be one year away from being eligible to become an unrestricted free
agent.

The deal means Gelinas and the Devils
will avoid going to arbitration.

The 24-year-old recorded six goals and
13 assists in 61 games with the Devils last season.

Tuesday, July 14, 2015

The Sea Dogs announced yesterday that
forwards Mike Thomas, Michael Kirkpatrick and Jason Cameron have all confirmed
that they will be in attendance for the Aug. 8 alumni game.

Thomas, who captained Saint John to the 2011
Memorial Cup title, played with the Sea Dogs from 2006-2011. The New Maryland native is the
franchise leader in games played. His last season of competitive hockey was in
2013-14 when he played with the UNB Varsity Reds.

Kirkpatrick played with the Dogs from
2007-2011. According to Elite Prospects, he is second all-time in franchise
scoring with 251 points in 266 games. Kirkpatrick has spent the past four
seasons playing with the StFX X-Men.

Cameron spent four seasons with Saint
John from 2010-2014. He played with the St. Thomas Tommies last season.

Tickets to the Aug. 8 game are now on
sale to the general public at the Harbour Station box office.

Sea Dogs defenseman Luke Green has gained
more early attention for the 2016 NHL Draft.

Green was one of the players listed in NHL Central Scouting’s Futures List - the players were not ranked - for North America and Europe. The listings was released today.

"The list is based on the body of
work that we saw from the players during 2014-15," NHL director of Central
Scouting Dan Marr told NHL.com. "A number of these players will be
changing teams for 2015-16 and that will be reflected in our preliminary
players to watch list in September."

Green was one of nine players from the
QMJHL to make the list and one of three to be featured on NHL.com. Here’s
what the website had to say about him:

The Sea Dogs led all teams in the
Canadian Hockey League with a franchise record seven players selected in the
2015 draft. Green (5-11, 174) might be the best of this year's group. He had 30
assists and 36 points in 60 regular-season games for the Sea Dogs last season
when he played big minutes and exhibited good mobility and vision on a young
team.

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

The Sea Dogs announced yesterday the
signing of yet another large human being.

The team announced that they had signed
18-year-old free agent forward Dawson Theede. The Whitby, Ontario native is
listed at 6’3” and 209 lbs. He is expected to join the team in August for the
opening of training camp.

In 41 games with the Ontario Junior
Hockey League’s Cobourg Cougars, Theede recorded 17 goals and 10 assists to go
along with 70 penalty minutes. He was named an OJHL Second-Team All-Prospect
last season as well.

Theede also played four games with Team
Canada East at the World Junior ‘A’ Hockey Challenge last year, recording no
points.

In 2013-14, Theede registered 23 points
in 28 games with the Whitby Wildcats midget AAA team.

Sea Dogs general manager Darrell Young
showed last year that he is a big fan of dipping into the Ontario free agent
market. Theede is also a big body, which is something Young has certainly been
putting a focus on when acquiring players.

Monday, July 6, 2015

The reunion is scheduled for Saturday,
August 8th through Sunday, August 16th. It features two main events sandwiched
around the start of Sea Dogs' training camp for the 2015-16 QMJHL season.

The Sea Dogs will hold an alumni game on
Saturday, August 8th, at 2 p.m. at Harbour Station, featuring dozens of players
from the franchise's first ten years. Sea Dogs alumni will make up both teams.
A silent auction will be held throughout the game.

Tickets for the alumni game are $10 for
adults and $5 for children ages 4-14, taxes and fees included. Children
3-and-under are free. Tickets are general admission and will be available at
the Harbour Station Box Office on Monday, July 13th.

A postgame autograph session with alumni
will take place at Harbour Station, followed by a reception and live auction at
Rocky's Sports Bar beginning at 8 p.m.

The reunion is in support of the
Children's Wish Foundation and the Saint John Regional Hospital Auxiliary's
Brighten Group.

The team previously held an alumni game
in August of 2013 and featured a team made up of former Sea Dogs taking on a
UNB Varsity Reds alumni squad. The game was quite popular amongst fans and it
was great to see many of the team’s former stars return to Harbour Station. Hopefully many of the fan favourites will be able to make it back again this year.

The rosters for this year's game will be
announced at a later date.

The reunion wraps up with the inaugural
Sea Dogs Open Water Swim on Sunday, August 16th, at 9 a.m. at the Renforth
Wharf Beach in Rothesay. More details on that can be found here.

The team also announced today that training camp will begin on Sunday, August 9th with the arrival of players.

Friday, July 3, 2015

The 26-year-old Grant registered 6-27-33
and 57 penalty minutes (PIM) in 58 games with the Binghamton Senators (AHL)
last season. The 6-foot-4, 205-pound native of Antigonish, NS has totaled 2-0-2
and a plus-three rating in two career NHL games with the Anaheim Ducks.

Grant was originally drafted by the
Pittsburgh Penguins in the fourth round (118th overall) in the 2007 NHL Entry
Draft.

The Coyotes’ American Hockey League
affiliate is the Springfield Falcons.

Grant, the first overall pick in the
2005 QMJHL Entry Draft, played three-and-a-half seasons with the Sea Dogs
before being traded to the Shawinigan Cataractes during the 2008-09 trading
period.

The 23-year-old Russian made his NHL
debut with the Caps this past season, recording a goal in two games. He also
had a breakout season with the American Hockey League’s Hershey Bears, posting
25 goals and 20 assists in 67 games.

A third-round pick of the Capitals in
the 2010 NHL Draft, Galiev posted 65 goals and 144 points in 151 regular season
games with the Sea Dogs over three seasons. He added 34 goals and 80 points in
57 playoff games.

Meanwhile, the Columbus Blue Jackets
announced today that they have signed former Sea Dogs enforcer Brett Gallant to
a two-year, two way deal.

In his rookie season with the Sea Dogs, the defenseman lived up to the hype and posted six goals and 30 assists in 60 games.

It’ll be interesting to see if Green can
inch up the rankings as the season goes on, much like Thomas Chabot did this
year. Saint John’s defense core has plenty of talent with Green, Chabot, Jakub
Zboril, Bailey Webster, Oliver Felixson and others.

American forward Auston Matthews was,
not surprisingly, ranked first for the 2016 draft by both websites. Also, as
you can see in the rankings, it doesn’t look like it will be a strong year for
the QMJHL.